1. The Central Valley Habitat Exchange
Creating new financial returns for landowners
Jane Urheim
Dan Kaiser, Ann Hayden

2. Introduction Environmental Defense Fund – San Francisco office
1) Economic and science-based solutions to environmental issues
2) Partnerships with companies, landowners, fishermen
Area of focus: Ecosystems
Central Valley Habitat Exchange (CVHE)
Disclaimer about CVHE because it is still in the stages of development.

3. What is a Habitat Exchange?
Allows developers, municipalities, or those impacting habitat to offset those impacts by purchasing “habitat credits” from landowners who undertake conservation activities on their property
Other conservation tools currently used:
Habitat Conservation Plans/Natural Community Conservation Plans
Land trusts
Conservation banks
Give 6 acres example

4. Central Valley Habitat Exchange
New initiative that provides farmers and ranchers with
financial incentives to maintain, restore, and/or
enhance habitat for at-risk species in the Central Valley.
Chinook salmon Swainson’s hawk Giant Garter Snake
First: The Central Valley is one of the world’s most productive agricultural regions.
Development and agricultural production in the Central Valley have replaced more than 95% of wetland, riparian, floodplain habitat.

5. Other key aspects of the CVHE
1) Landowners as part of the solution
2) Agricultural land providing habitat for at-risk species
3) Habitat Quantification Tool (HQT)
Standardized metric to measure
habitat quality
Species-specific
Excel + Google Earth

6. Research California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
Focus on mitigation for Swainson’s hawk foraging habitat
Sacramento, Yolo, Placer, Yuba, Sutter, San Joaquin counties
Under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), agencies must review projects to determine if they may result in significant impacts on natural and biological resources, including listed and non-listed species. Agencies are required, where possible, to avoid or minimize a project’s environmental impacts on these non-listed species.

7. Communications/Outreach1)
StoryBook
StoryMap
2) Swainson’s hawk HQT guidance brochure
3) California Farm Bureau survey questions
Sample questions:
Do you currently make any management decisions on your land for the benefit of wildlife?
How willing would you be to change land management practices for conservation or mitigation purposes?

8. Obstacles Still an idea, complicated to explain
Many other conservation tools available in CA
Question of demand
Wildlife agency approval for the Habitat Quantification Tool

9. Reflection Environmental policy is slow-moving; need patience
Honed critical thinking skills
Learned a lot, can apply to any part of policy
Good to work in an office
Being in SF was awesome – got to go to Yosemite, Big Sur, etc.
Maybe work in environmental policy, maybe not, but overall wonderful experience.

10. Acknowledgements Princeton Environmental Institute for funding
Environmental Defense Fund:
Dan Kaiser
Manager, California Habitat Markets
Ann Hayden
Director, CA Habitat Exchange & Western Water